Coffee Break
by soundcheck123
Summary: Ryan and Esposito are curious; Castle is bragging; Kate is furious... and a little flattered. Caskett, established relationship. No spoilers, just a little idea I had to write down!


_This was the product of a night of insomnia and, upon re-reading it, I realized just how badly written it was. So I'm reposting it; basically the same story, hopefully with a little less typos :)_

_Doikea commented with a great idea, so a second chapter is coming at some point in the future... Whenever my professors realize my brain is about to melt down (fingers crossed, people!)._

**XXX**

Castle stood in the break room, savoring his first sip of coffee in the morning, which one might consider odd, since it was already 11 am. That didn't mean his day didn't get off to a good start - in fact, according to Castle's standards, this morning _could not_have gone better. Breakfast had to be skipped due to an urgent matter. Yeah, sure, there was a murder, but that wasn't the whole story. Richard Castle smiled goofily to himself as he remembered the beginning of the plot: a certain detective who woke up in the mood for a little... frisking, if you will.

Castle was so immersed in thoughts he barely noticed Ryan and Esposito come in.

"Yo, Castle!" Ryan snapped his fingers mid-air, trying to get his attention. Castle's grin turned upside down.

"What?!" He asked, trying his best not to sound as upset as he felt.

"You looked like a retard." Esposito pointed out as he reached for a mug.

"Yeah, well, next time, don't interrupt me."

For a moment, the three men just stood there, apparently just drinking coffee. However, a silent argument was going on in the room: Ryan and Esposito exchanged looks and, without Castle ever realizing it, had a fierce debate, which ended abruptly when Esposito stepped on Ryan's shoe and slapped his back forcefully.

"Whoa, you choking, buddy?" He inquired in a Razzie Award-worthy performance, faking concern for his partner.

Ryan gave him a vicious look and turned to Castle, still coughing.

"So, Castle... Y-you and Beckett, huh?"

Once again, Castle couldn't suppress a smile.

"I know, who would've thought, right?" He nodded cheerfully.

Esposito shook his head and quietly motioned for Ryan to keep up.

"How... How's it going with you two? All good?" His voice came out strangely high-pitched; at this point, Castle realized something was up. This wasn't your casual break room chat - those two were up to something.

"Yes." He answered suspiciously, shooting a glance at Esposito before turning his attention back to Ryan. "Why do you ask?"

Ryan looked absolutely frightened and turned to his partner.

"Dude, there's no way I'm asking him that."

Esposito looked like he might slap him again, but Castle wasn't paying attention to this - he just _had_ to know what they were talking about.

"Ask me what?"

The two detectives exchanged glances once again and, upon noticing how terrified Ryan still looked, Esposito stepped in.

"Listen, Castle - no, Rick - can I call you Rick? - alright, I'll call you Rick - Rick, the thing is, you should know..."

"Cut the crap and get to the point." Castle interrupted him, growing anxious. He was, after all, a five-year-old at heart and could not stand being curious.

"How is she?" Ryan blurted out.

Esposito smacked the back of his head.

"Dude!"

Ryan looked helpless.

"What? He told you to get to the point!"

Esposito shook his head in disbelief, while Castle started a very earnest speech.

"Guys, guys... This is my girlfriend you are talking about, I'm not going to advertise our priv..."

"She's on the phone, you're cool." Esposito sensed the phoniness behind Castle's words, after all, if anyone was up for a little casual bragging, that person was Richard Castle.

He looked through the window to make sure Kate was busy and waved his hands, motioning for the other two to come closer, which they obediently did.

Castle turned his head to both of them with an earnest look before starting.

"Gentlemen, when I share this very important piece of information with you, bear in mind that, as a fiction writer and millionaire, ranked _six_ times among the top 10 most desirable bachelors in New York, I have had countless romantic affairs with a variety of women, ranging from actresses to models with incredibly low self-esteem - one of which was a former gymnast." He paused to breathe. "And, when they weren't able to fulfill my fantasies, my creative mind did the work." Ryan and Esposito leaned in closer - this was it.

Castle stopped, apparently having remembered something important.

"And I also have a respectable porn collection."

Ryan and Esposito started losing their patience.

"Yeah, so?"

Castle lowered his voice slightly.

"Kate Beckett surpasses all of it. _Combined._"

After a split second in silence, as they absorbed the information, both Ryan and Esposito burst into laughter, raising their hands to high five Castle, who looked absolutely pleased with himself. Their... celebration?... was rudely interrupted by someone clearing their throat by the door.

"Castle?" A feminine voice spoke softly - _too_ softly. Apparently, Beckett's phone call had been long over.

The atmosphere changed immediately. Esposito, who had been standing between Castle and the entrance to the room, stepped back, exposing him. Almost instinctively, the now frightened looking author stepped back too - as if that would offer him any protection.

It was Ryan's turn to clear his throat.

"I got to, hm, check that thing about the... other thing. Espo, you coming?"

"Right behind you."

The two nearly ran out, not even daring to look at Beckett as they walked past her.

Castle's mental danger alert was going off like crazy and he could only think of two words: damage control.

"Honey..." He started, trying to buy himself some time.

"Don't call me 'honey'." She deadpanned.

"So..." Castle tapped nervously on the table. "Exactly how much of that did you hear?" He asked, suddenly very fond of the floor tiles.

"Oh, I heard enough."

Her voice was still calm - like the ocean before a shark attack. He raised his head just enough to meet her gaze. Castle thought he was used to Kate's death glare, but _this_- this was something else entirely. He wondered how long it would take for him to turn into stone. Five seconds? Maybe ten, if he was lucky.

She finally snapped, closing the door behind her.

"Castle, this is my workplace! You shouldn't talk about our private life here! Or anywhere, for that matter!"

Once again, a grin stretched across his face involuntarily, which seemed to make her even angrier.

"Do you think this is _funny_?" She nearly hissed.

"No, no, no!" His expression changed immediately. "It's just nice to hear you say _our_ private life, that's all." He smirked, turning up all his charm, hoping it would be enough to soften her. A quick glance was enough to realize he was being too optimistic. She sighed, looking tired.

"Castle, I don't want to hear another word about this relationship here, or at a crime scene, or at the lab, or... any time I have my badge on me, are we clear?"

He opened his mouth, as if willing to say something, but then closed it quickly.

"What _is it_?" She was still hissing. Not good.

"So, we're not going to... play... with the badge... anymore?"

She went black in the eye. He was sure his legs were turning into stone at this point.

"_Rick!_" The whisper was so filled with anger it came out more like a bark. She looked around the room as if the entire precinct was there listening in on them, even though they were completely alone.

"Okay, nevermind, we'll discuss it later. It's up to you, honey." Her eyes widened and her face turned about seven shades redder. "No, no honey, sorry, I didn't mean that, I don't know what I was thinking!"

Taking a huge risk, he took one step closer.

"It won't happen again, I promise."

She didn't seem to really buy it, but he sensed he was close to getting away with it. She handed him a folder.

"C'mon, we have to go see the victim's family."

He grabbed their coats and followed her to the elevator.

As the doors slid shut, he quietly mumbled something.

"It was a compliment, you know?"

Beckett blushed at this, but luckily he didn't notice and she managed to pull herself together quickly.

"Castle?" She said softly, looking straight ahead.

"Yes?" He responded, turning his head to face her.

"One more word and you're not getting any tonight."

A mix of shock and concern spread across his face, but no sound came from his mouth.

_This is going to be fun_, she thought to herself, amused.


End file.
